


haunted

by anon_drabble



Category: Mystic Messenger (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, F/M, Obsession, no happy ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-06
Updated: 2018-11-06
Packaged: 2019-08-19 23:19:15
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,815
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16544234
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anon_drabble/pseuds/anon_drabble
Summary: request: what if mc and Jihyun/Saeran broke up, like if mc got fed up of competing to prove herself better than Rika and being third wheel in her own relationship in v’s case. I don’t really know about saeran, but it really intrigued me how he would react.i took and made it two requests because i love making extra work for myself. :-p this is v’s part. it…ended up going in a way i didn’t want it to so i’m very, very sorry if it’s not to your liking!





	haunted

**Author's Note:**

> originally posted on my tumblr: https://anon-drabble.tumblr.com  
> if you're able, i definitely recommend you visit the tumblr where i do reblog prompts like these and also post additional content like much shorter fluff pieces and headcanons.

“Nnngh, no!”

MC was startled awake. She jerked slightly, opened her eyes to darkness. Taking stock, she felt the sleeping form of Jihyun beside her. It was late. They had been sleeping. What had caused her to wake up?

“Rika… No…”

Oh. That was it. It was Jihyun, having a nightmare. Again. It had been over two years since they had said goodbye to Rika and her cult but the ghost continued to haunt him. The nightmares had become less but every now and then, they still plagued him. He had admitted how bad they were before he returned. MC knew they were a source of unending pain for him. She sympathized. Really, she did. She wasn’t heartless. The man she loved was suffering. It would have impossible to completely turn a blind eye. MC sat up in their bed. She ran her fingers through his hair (he somehow had the softest hair she’d ever felt), about to wake him up. He was sweating and even seemed to be shaking a small amount. It hurt to see him suffering. MC gently shook him until his eyes fluttered open. He was wide-eyed, breathing heavily, and didn’t seem to know where he was. In that past, MC would try to wake him up with a kiss or a sweeter, softer way. But he always said the same thing when he woke up:

“Rika?”

D“It was a bad dream, Jihyun. It’s just me.” She was glad the dark room hid her expression. The pain when the first name he called was hers. The annoyance that even after all that happened and his promise to love MC, he still seemed to be obsessed with Rika. The way she’d silently sigh when he never corrected her from saying it was “just” her. MC knew it was a little unreasonable to be upset with him. He couldn’t help it. Rika had been a large part of his life and had left deep scars on his heart. Even MC would never forget what she’d gone through with Rika.

“Oh. Thank you for waking me up. It’s still late, isn’t it? I apologize for waking you,” he murmured, giving her a sleepy smile. It was hard to be upset with him when he was awake. He was sweet and loving.

MC leaned down, gently brushing his hair from his forehead. She left a kiss there. “That will chase away any other bad dreams,” she promised. Jihyun was smiling as his eyes fell closed again. He was asleep right away and seemed peaceful again. MC sighed and put her feet to the floor, silently padding out of the room. She poured some water for tea in a kettle and took a seat in their kitchen.

Jihyun was a good partner. He was loving and good to her. He had learned from his mistakes. He loved MC and she never doubted that. She loved him deeply. It had taken him two years to come to her and say he was ready to love again. She believed he’d loved her the entire two years they spent apart, as she had loved him. But his trauma needed time and she appreciated that he made the decision to work through things rather than jump into anything with her. It had been lonely without him for two years but it showed how much he truly cared. When he returned from his travels, he promised he was ready. So at first, MC had nothing but sympathy for those hard nights. For the way his mood would dramatically shift whenever he was reminded. She was patient and stayed with him. At first. But it continued to be a problem. Obviously, Jihyun couldn’t recover overnight. And she didn’t expect him to. But when he came back, he had said he was ready. Nights like these, it didn’t seem like he was truly ready. Yes, he had healed over the last two years. But had it been enough?

When this mood hit her, it always left MC feeling guilty and bitter. She loved him so much. There was no doubt that he was the man for her. And while awake, they were happy. It was at night when Rika’s ghost invaded his dreams that MC wondered. Wondered who was actually on his mind more. And it wasn’t even his fault. Jihyun made every effort to heal the wounds on his heart. But maybe they had rushed a little too much. Maybe Jihyun came back before he was truly ready. It had felt like an eternity while he was gone.

The kettle announced the hot water, shaking MC from her thoughts. She took her tea to the couch where she had a book nearby. MC ended up falling asleep on the couch, though she didn’t intend to. She meant to go back to bed when her tea was done. As the sun rose, the light finally woke Jihyun. He blinked and stretched. He felt better already, the nightmare forgotten. But when he turned to kiss the love of his life, she was gone.

“MC?” Jihyun called, going through the house. Worry invaded his voice slightly. He found her on the couch, still sleeping. Why had she slept on the couch? He wanted to let her sleep but he was concerned. “MC, can you wake up?” He put a hand on her shoulder, gently applying pressure until she stirred.

Her eyes felt like they were glued shut but she yawned, signaling she was awake. “What is it, Jihyun?”

“Why are you out here? Was there something wrong with our bed?” he asked. The memories of Rika’s episodes were popping up against his will. How she’d wake up some mornings inexplicably angry. Or when she’d be upset with him and either he or her would sleep elsewhere. He’d never had that problem with MC yet but it felt too familiar to wake up without that form beside him.

“Hmm? Oh, sorry. I made some tea after you went to sleep again and I guess I fell asleep out here.” MC stretched, finally prying her eyes open. She saw a haunted look in Jihyun’s eyes. He was remembering again.

“Oh. You could have come back to bed,” he replied. “Went to sleep again? Did I wake up last night?” He had no memory of his nightmares.

MC exhaled softly. Great. A talk like this first thing in the morning. “You had another nightmare last night. I woke you up to calm you down. You went back to sleep but I needed to clear my head. I really didn’t mean to fall asleep out here. I meant to go back to bed. I’m sorry to worry you.”

The way her voice went flat when she spoke of his nightmare, Jihyun could figure out what he’d dreamt of. Yet another nightmare about Rika. He was glad he couldn’t remember the details. There were entire days now when he didn’t think of her. When he’d first met MC, Rika was always on his mind. In that sense, his improvement was impressive. But he also wished he wasn’t reminded of her so easily. “Oh. I guess I overreacted when I didn’t see you this morning. I must have made your night rough. I’m sorry, MC.”

She knew he was sincere. He always was. But those nightmares would still come back and they’d still be dealing with the shadow over their relationship. “How long is she going to haunt us, Jihyun? How long until I have you to myself?” she asked quietly.

“MC…” he mumured, taking a seat next to her on the couch. “You do have me to yourself. I love you and I know it’s not obsession. It’s real. You know I have no lingering feelings for Rika.”

“Except guilt. Sadness. Fear. You don’t love her anymore, Jihyun, but are you actually over her? Or did you force yourself too soon and we’re stuck in this muck, dealing with her leftover mess. I know you love me. I love you so much and that’s why this is hard for me. I want to take care of you and help you. Spend all my time loving you. But I can’t help you with this and that makes it so much worse.” She leaned over, resting against his shoulder. This was not how she wanted her morning to go. “I’m sorry, Jihyun. This has just been bothering me. I don’t want to be another Rika to you. Our relationship was going to be different. No obsession. No cults. No brainwashing.” She chuckled weakly.

He wrapped an arm around her but didn’t know what magic words he could say that you help her. In truth, he wondered sometimes, too. “You’re not like Rika to me. You’re not a replacement for her. There is nothing about you that lends to any bad energy. I, too, wish I could forget her. This is why I struggled. I didn’t want you to ever doubt or feel burdened from being with me.”

“But it’s not you, Jihyun. It’s her. It was always her. I love you and I’m not willing to give up because of this. But you have to understand that I need to make sure you’re all-in too. We can be stronger together, right?” she smiled bravely, despite her sadness.

“Of course, MC,” he breathed a sigh of relief.  He was certain this time it was truly love and he wasn’t willing to lose her.

Months passed and the two worked tirelessly at their relationship. Endlessly. It was difficult and MC wondered if they were even making progress. V still woke up from dreams. Even out in public, the smallest thing could remind him of Rika. He even became hyper-aware of that and so was on edge. Which just made the reminders stand out more to him. By trying to address the lingering traces, he had inadvertently heightened them and made things worse. Still, they fought for their love. And it wasn’t all sadness. They shared many happy moments and made new memories. And it seemed they would be making more. MC discovered she was pregnant. At first, she was thrilled. Eagerly, she raced home to tell Jihyun. Surely this news would erase all traces of Rika! But when she arrived, Jihyun was in the shower. She saw a magazine on the table, advertising something called Magenta Dye for hair. Her body stiffened and she made her way to the bathroom. Yes. She heard him crying inside, though the sounds of the shower mostly drowned it out. She turned and left their home, texting Jihyun that she would be working late. She knew that was the wrong way to handle it. She knew as she checked into a hotel that she was handling the situation badly. Jihyun needed to know. Surely this child would banish thoughts of Rika away?

But what if it didn’t? What if the child heard its father saying Rika’s name more than MC’s? Yes, his demeanor usually showed he was unhappy when thinking about Rika but for a child to hear their father referring to another woman all the time? MC couldn’t handle that. She couldn’t deal with the questions the baby would have.

The next morning, MC felt as though she’d made a mistake. She’d overreacted. That was all. Jihyun would easily forget about Rika now. Right? He would turn that attention to MC. All of his attention. On her. Worship her. Worship their child. Like… Like he had with Rika. No. That wasn’t what MC wanted. What was happening? Wasn’t there any way? Was there a way for Jihyun to be healthy and happy in a relationship without sacrificing himself at all? The answer was unfortunately obvious. No. Not at this time. Even if MC told him about her pregnancy, he would either remain as he was, still traumatized, or shift to the unhealthy adoration of all of them.

So that was it, then. MC called Jihyun home. Told him there was an emergency. He made it home in record time, which just made her feel terrible. She began crying immediately.

“MC! What is it? What’s wrong?” he asked, always so concerned for her, above all else.

“Jihyun… I love you. You know that. But it’s over. I just… We can’t do this anymore. We’re done.”

He didn’t respond right away, just stared at her. But he took a step forward, put his hands on her arms. “You love me,” he said, as if that were a response. “So why?” She didn’t have an answer for him. He pulled her into a hug, which she did not reciprocate, though it broke her heart. “MC, don’t do this. Please. I don’t know what’s bothering you but let’s take some time. And see how you feel tomorrow.”

She shook her head. “No, Jihyun. Just… No. I’m sorry. I am. I don’t want to hurt you. But there’s no choice. Not right now.”

“No, MC, please. Don’t. We can talk this out. We love each other, right?”

She looked at him so apologetically. She cupped his face in her hands. “We do, Jihyun. We do.” She kissed him, her tears staining both their cheeks. When she broke the kiss, she met his eyes. “I’m sorry, Jihyun. Um. You can do whatever you’d like with this place. I’ll find somewhere else. I know… I know this is bad. And it’s okay if you grow to hate me. Although I kind of hope you don’t but it’s understandable if you do. I love you. I love you so, so much.”

“But why, MC? You keep telling me you love me. I love you. Why, then?” he asked, begging her with his eyes. His hands were still gripping her, preventing her from leaving.

“Rika.” With that single word, his hands released her. MC turned and left, sobbing.

Life didn’t go well after that. MC was miserable, as was Jihyun. Their split was known amongst the RFA, and Jumin did not accept the news well. Rika had already left and nearly ruined V already. Now MC? With his resources, it was easy to track her down. But Jumin was patient and he knew not to approach her immediately after the breakup. It was half a year later when he knocked on her door. Unwisely, she opened it without looking to see who it was.

“Jumin! What are you doing here?” she asked. Then she gasped. “Jihyun!” That had to be the reason Jumin was there.

But his eyes were on her stomach. On the prominent pregnancy bump. His eyes narrowed to slits, one of the rare instances he would show his anger. “I see. So that’s why. You were cheating,” he accused, his voice rock-hard and sharp.

MC frantically watched him, thinking Jihyun was in desperate trouble. But Jumin was looking at her. Looking at… Oh. She put her hands on her unborn child. But she went pale when he suggested cheating. “No! Jumin, no! That’s not it! I would never! The baby is Jihyun’s!” she blurted. But then she realized her mistake. Telling Jumin would lead to Jihyun finding out. And he couldn’t. “I-I didn’t tell him. I couldn’t. I knew if he found out, all the progress he’d made in loving himself, it would all take a backseat. He would obsess again. I wanted him to just… focus on himself. Take care of himself. Not me. That’s why. Jumin, please. Keep this a secret a while longer. Okay? Please don’t tell him? This was all for his sake.”

“You’re a liar, MC. You didn’t deserve him.” Jumin turned and left without another word.

He was right. She couldn’t argue. Was it a mistake to leave Jihyun? To be alone? She would never know. The choice was made. She was alone and her child would most likely never know their father.

Jumin eventually told Jihyun. Somehow, he was worse after MC left him. He never thought of Rika again but he couldn’t erase the memories of his true happiness. Jumin told Jihyun after he received news MC had delivered her baby. A boy. Jihyun had a son.

“She had a child?” Jihyun asked, the idea of racing after her and finding his child blinding him briefly. Surely she wouldn’t turn him away that time.

“She knew the whole time. She didn’t want you to know. Don’t waste a thought on them, friend.” Jumin’s words did not help.

“You’re right, Jumin. As always. I have no right to see that child. She was right to leave me. I should be that brave.”

The next day, Jihyun was gone. No traces. Not even Luciel could locate him. No one heard from him again. Jumin blamed MC. MC blamed herself. Jihyun, for the rest of his life, blamed himself. Too many mistakes were made without any attempts made to fix them. There could be no happy ending.


End file.
